Anybody use a rice cooker, and if so, what kind?

M

melissa-dallas

Well-known member
After years of cooking stove top rice it seems that I can never get it to turn out nice lately. Doesn't matter what brand-Mahatma or bulk jasmine from W.F. Same pan, same stove, same water. I just don't get it. Also curious as to whether you use the cooker for cereal or steaming veggies or shrimp.

 
I've been using a rice cooker for years- perfect rice every time. I actually never had

problems with white rice on the stovetop, but brown rice was another story - it always came out mushy - now it comes out perfectly. Also, having a rice cooker frees up a burner, plus you don't have to worry about watching the clock - it turns off by itself when ready, and keeps it on the warm cycle.
The brand I have is Black and Decker - the price was about $19.00, and I don't think it's gone up much over the years. I don't have the nonstick version, which is the updated version. Also, it doesn't come with a steamer for vegetables, etc. - I use a steamer insert in a large pot for steaming.

http://www.blackanddeckerappliances.com/product-138.html

 
I've used one since 1976 and just can't imagine doing it any other way...

Mine is a really old one from a Japanese store - a gift. But I've heard the B&D Meryl mentioned is good. They can range all the way up to $$$ that you program and stuff, but NOT necessary. Got with a basic model that cooks it and turns off to a 'warm' setting. Mine keeps it warm for a long time. For 2 cups rice, I use 2-1/4 cups water. If you do the 2x water to rice like they suggest, you'll end up with mush.

 
Isn't that always the case? Why is it that rice instructions, whether for the stovetop or

rice cooker, always tell you to add much too much water? I've always had to decrease it drastically.

 
i've used a rice cooker all my life (probably started when I was 10 smileys/smile.gif

We eat rice nearly every day, so I have no qualms spending ~$100 on it. My current one is probably 10 years old, so I figure I certainly have gotten my money's worth.

I have a Tiger cooker/warmer thing, but I'm lusting over a fuzzy logic one, which supposedly cooks brown rice better, but those are in the $150 range.

Now there are even ones with induction heating, but those run about $400!, but you can bake and slow cook in it too smileys/smile.gif

Guess the price range should correlate to the amount of times you'll use it.

I never use mine for anything but rice, but I guess it's because it's always cooking the rice while I'm cooking other things.

Well, I do have another use for it - it's good for keeping foods warm, when I want to transport it, for potlucks and stuff.

 
Thanks everyone. I think I'll try an inexpensive one first. I've heard they do things like

steel cut oats and other cooked cereal well too.

 
I have a 10 cup cooker, and I tried cooking 1 cup steel cut oats, plus 4 cups water...

Granted the "cup" size of a rice cooker is 6 oz, not 8oz.

I used a regular measuring cup for my oats, and it overflowed my cooker. The oats got foamy, and the foam spewed out of the steam vent.

It was a huge mess, and I never tried it again. I probably coulda tried with a smaller amount, but it just seemed like more trouble than it was worth.

 
I've used a cooker for 22 years now. We got a 5-cup Hitachi for a wedding ...

...present and it's still going strong. Perfect rice every time. Long grain, short grain, white or brown, it's always been perfect.

Michael

 
I just bought one four days ago...

because I make really bad rice. What a difference. I've tried both jasmine and basmatti and I much prefer the latter.

I don't remember who made the cooker - I simply went to Target and bought the smallest since there are only two of us!

 
I have an old Hitachi 1 liter size rice cooker that I've used for years.

The lid is metal with a tiny steam hole and very easy to clean. It's not a nonstick version, but cleans very easily if you lightly grease the bowl before adding the rice. I've cooked all kinds of rice, and it makes perfect rice every time regardless of the amount. When the rice is done, it dings and switches to the warm setting, then holds the rice perfectly for hours. I've also cooked a mixture of rice, grains and lentils which came out perfectly, too. The cooker came with a creole cookbook which I never got around to trying. I think I paid around $30 for it.

 
I wonder if you soaked the oats first and added a little fat to them

if that would have cut back on the foaming. I know it does in a pressure cooker. I have made soup in mine, lentils, various other grains. I saute the vegetables and meat right in the cooker and then add the rice/starch and cook. I stir it a little, and sometimes I may have to reset it to cook, but it's nice for making a small batch of soup when you don't feel like heating up the stove or oven.

 
I have one but I hardly ever use it. I don't like how the rice comes out.

Maybe I should dig it out and give it another try.....

 
I love mine. It's a Black and Decker, with about a

4-cup capacity. It came with a plastic bowl that I lost or broke (?) a few years ago, but I just put any plastic bowl in there and it works fine. I usually just use rice, but I'm sure vegetables or anything, really, would be good in it too.

'Still wondering why people say steamed meat is tough. I don't think so at all.

I also have a small bamboo steamer, and a metal collapsable one, but I find the electric B & D steamer that "dings" when it's done, is easier and more convenient. For camping, though, the metal one is good for putting in a pot of boiling water.

And I haven't had the bamboo one long enough to take it anywhere!

 
Mine never worked out. Ended up giving it to coworker who had used her so much she wore it out...

same exact model. She couldn't have been happier to get an almost new one completely free.

Go figure.

Can't remember the brand...oval shaped, plastic, you could do vegetables in it as well. Rice always came out crunchy for me.

 
Eva, do you rinse the rice first? Rice has a starchy coating.

If you rinse rice until the water runs clear, the rice will be fluffy after it is cooked. If you don't rinse, the rice will be a bit sticky. Some people prefer one way, some the other.

 
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